I know I’m a day late in posting. Monday’s are always busy, and frankly I was hesitant to post my results. I exercised so much more last week than I have since I started this project. Not only did I walk the four mile round trip to work and back but I put in a couple sessions of swimming, a rigorous step routine and two sessions of various activity on my Wii Fit. I thought for sure I would be able to report a loss for the week. You can imagine my dismay on Monday morning when I weighed in and found myself to be two pounds heavier.

It’s bad enough to be in a plateau, but to actually be moving backwards is extremely demoralizing. I’m trying to tell myself that it’s muscle weight. My whole body hurt this weekend from all the extra activity and I can tell that my strength is increasing. Still, it’s difficult to see the scale going up when I’m putting in the extra effort.

I’m trying not to let it get me down. I’m determined this week to make progress and push past this plateau/backslide. Not only am I increasing my aerobic activity, but I’m adamant about no splurges this week. I know I ate a bit more than usual last week, but I contributed it to my increased activity level and figured I was hungrier because I was expending more energy. That may be the case, but I’m going to make sure I supply myself with only things that are good for me. There’s a time and place for occasional indulgences, but the midst of an aggressive lifestyle change is not one of those times.

I just have to remember that I’m not entitled to indulgence. Like so many things in my life, I am blessed to have extravagant choices (as most of us in America are). The responsible thing to do is make wise choices about what I put into my body and not behave like a glutton just because I can. How can I teach my sons, especially Cainan, responsibility and self-control when they don’t even see it exemplified in the basic part of my life. I owe it to them and myself to maintain healthy eating habits, an active lifestyle and exhibit basic self-discipline.

So, I’ll get off my soap box for now, though I could go on and on and on about the extravagance of the American lifestyle, and instead, be thankful for all the choices I have. I’ll get back on track and hopefully, I’ll have a much better report for next Monday.

Thanks, again, for those of you following the blog and keeping me accountable with your comments. It really helps knowing someone is following what I’m doing and I have to report my results each week. It just makes me think twice before I eat something I shouldn’t, knowing I’m not the only one who’s going to see the results on the scale.

Week 7 = 176 pounds (-14 total)